India’s leading local search provider, ‘Just Dial’ catering for about 57 million customers, across 2000 town and cities along with its MD Venkatachalam Subramani, directors Venkatachalam Krishnan, Ramani Iyyer and eight others had been accused of cheating the owner of a beauty parlour, Madanmohan Khade and causing him a loss of Rs 8,800 as per the FIR registered inThane in between December 2011 and April 2012.

More than 145,000 paid advertisers use Just Dial all over India as the popular platform to popularize their products and services. Khade had also planned to boost up his business by advertising via Just Dial, and set up a contract of three months on a trial basis.

The company never displayed 50 photographs of the parlour on their official website, as promised to Mr Khade, after he paid them the cheque of Rs 6,618. Being dissatisfied by the services, Mr Khade didn’t extend the contract with them.

After a few months, Khade gradually discovered that a monthly amount of Rs 2,200 is being deducted regularly by Just Dial from his bank account via electronic clearing service. He alleges Just Dial for engaging a person who grabbed his signature the ECS form without his knowledge, as complained by his lawyer, Rajesh Kakad too.

Initially Khade visited the Thane police station who refused to register the FIR, then the issue was taken into court, which directed the police to accept the FIR. The company has been booked under the following sections of 406 (breach of trust), 417 (punishment for cheating), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50), 463 (forgery), 464 (making a false documents), 465 (punishment for forgery) and several relevant sections, but no arrests have been made so far.

However, it is needless to say, that Just Dial refutes all the charges, and claims them to be baseless. According to the deputy chief financial officer, Mr Srinivas Koora, Mr Khade had initially had tied up a contract of Rs 24,000 with just Dial in December 2011. At that time, he himself had signed the ECS form and accepted to pay monthly installments for nine months. In April 2012, Khade suddenly decided to terminate the contract and accused them as cheaters. Koora also adds on that such an attempt is clearly to damage the reputation of the company and managing director.